


Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

by WinJennster



Series: Painted Angels 'verse [4]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Christmas Fluff, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-12-26
Updated: 2014-12-26
Packaged: 2018-03-03 15:21:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,451
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2855636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WinJennster/pseuds/WinJennster
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Every inch of the firehouse was draped with lights and tinsel, and the smell of evergreen mingled with cinnamon and chocolate. Packages were wrapped prettily and stacked under and around the large fir dominating the three windows in the front of the building. There was another small tree sitting atop the baby grand, and a sprig of mistletoe dangling from all three of the ceiling fans. <br/>But if you asked Cas Novak-Winchester what his favorite decoration was, he’d have said it was the grin on Dean’s face.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas

**Author's Note:**

> This is likely the final Painted Angels Timestamp. It's a thank you. To all of you that have read the fic, rec'ced it, left me a kudos - to all of you that have been helping to hold me up over the last several months - to anyone who's ever had one kind word for me - thank you.   
> Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Have a very Merry Christmas - and may your New Year be bright and hopeful.  
> Lots of Love,   
> Jenn

Every inch of the firehouse was draped with lights and tinsel, and the smell of evergreen mingled with cinnamon and chocolate. Packages were wrapped prettily and stacked under and around the large fir dominating the three windows in the front of the building. There was another small tree sitting atop the baby grand, and a sprig of mistletoe dangling from all three of the ceiling fans.

But if you asked Cas Novak-Winchester what his favorite decoration was, he’d have said it was the grin on Dean’s face.

His husband had decorated the place to the nines, and it looked like, as Sam had said, Santa had barfed in the place.

If it made Dean smile, Cas would let him string lights on anything that stood still. Besides, it was their first Christmas as a married couple, and they damn well deserved to go all out - especially after the previous year, when they were both nursing broken hearts, and Cas was on a flight to Paris - _again_.

This year, they were weeks away from their first anniversary. This year, they were married.

“Is that pie burning?!”

Cas looked up from the present he was wrapping. “No. It still has twenty minutes.”

Dean put his hands on his hips and glared at Cas, the expression’s ferocity lessened by the Santa hat he had on - the pom pom was at the end of a spring, after all, and no one could hope to look even a little menacing with that on.

“Burnt pie is cause for divorce, y’know?”

“That sweater is cause for divorce,” Cas retorted.

“Hey!” Dean looked down at his sweater. “It’s _Guardians of the Galaxy_! Charlie got it for me!”

“Doesn’t make it attractive.” He grinned at Dean to let him know he was kidding. Smirking, Dean crossed the floor and gently removed the package from his hands and straddled Cas’s lap.

“Mmm, can I help you?” Cas asked, wrapping his arms around Dean’s waist to pull him closer.

“I think so. How much time do we have before everyone gets here?”

“Not that long!” Sam announced loudly.

“Dammit,” Dean muttered, dropping his head to Cas’s shoulder.

“Hey kiddies! It’s Christmas!”

“Uh. We’re aware Gabe.”

“Yeah, yeah, snowflake. Are we gonna watch a Christmas Story?”

“Duh!” Dean climbed off of Cas’s lap and grinned at his brother. “Provided Cas doesn’t burn the pie!”

“The pie is fine! Stop it with your pie paranoia!”

Cas did get up and go to the kitchen to check the pie anyway. Couldn’t hurt to cover his ass.

“Hello! Merry Christmas, y’all!” Benny let himself in, a case of wine under one arm and a sequined Santa hat on his head.

“What is up with that hat, Ben?” Dean asked with a grin.

“He took mine!” Andrea, Benny’s girlfriend, laughed.

“‘Cause I hate mine!” he complained, as Andrea pulled the hat off and exchanged it for a red and green striped one with elf ears attached.

“There you go, love,” she smiled.

“Aw, Andrea…”

“You look so nice,” she smiled up at him, and Cas grinned as Benny melted at her smile.

“Ok, darlin’. If you say so.”

Andrea stood on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek, and Benny turned bright red.

“Oh my god! Move you vampirate!” Jo yelled from the stairwell.

“I wear a vampire costume one time in my life…”

“Hey, doesn’t anyone know how to knock anymore?” Dean groused.

“Well, jerk, don’t give everyone keys to your house then!”

“Shuddup, bitch!”

“Boys, such language on Christmas!”

“Sorry, Ellen.”

“Idjits. Where’s the beer?”

“Like you need one, old man,” Dean grumbled, tossing a Bud to Bobby.

“Hey, check out my ring!” Jo yelled, waving her left hand in the air.

“Where’s your man?”

“Working, Gabe.”

“So he does actually exist?”

“Hey!” Jo glared at Sam, one hand on his hip. “Just ‘cause you’re in LA more than you’re home these days doesn’t mean he’s not real! Inias happens to be on duty, asshat!”

“Children…”

“Holy shit, you guys are so loud I could hear you outside!” Charlie set several packages on the kitchen counter. She sniffed the air, pulling a face. “Is a pie burning or something?”

“Crap!” Cas exclaimed, pushing through the crowd to get to the oven. Thankfully, the pie inside was perfect, nice and golden brown all over.

“Mmm, perfect. Just like you,” Dean purred, wrapping his arms around Cas’s waist and kissing his neck.

“Ew, get a room.”

“We have a room. We have a whole firehouse. Shut it, Sasquatch.”

Sam laughed and moved to help Ellen unload the bag of food she and Bobby had brought, and with Ellen barking orders, everything was set on the table within a few minutes.

“Before you hooligans dig in and eat everything, I brought foam take out boxes from the Roadhouse. We’re gonna make plates for Inias and Dorothy first.”

“Thanks,” Charlie smiled gratefully. “She really wanted to be here, but she had a flight.”

“Airlines don’t stop for Christmas,” Bobby informed the table.

“Yeah, I know. And it’s kinda sexy having a pilot for a girlfriend - uh, fiancée,” Charlie corrected herself, smiling down at her own diamond sparkler.

Foam boxes filled and set aside, Ellen next demanded that they join hands around the table. “Say grace, old man.”

“Aw, do I hav’to?” Bobby complained. “Y’know that ain’t my thing.”

“I’ll do it,” Cas volunteered.

“Wonderful,” Ellen nodded.

“Dear Lord,” Cas began, “thank you for allowing us to all be here tonight, gathered to celebrate Christmas. Thank you for the blessings you’ve bestowed on us throughout the year, and for the new people you’ve brought into our lives. Thank for you the gift of my husband,” he said, squeezing Dean’s hand, “and for the gift of this family. Amen.”

“Perfect,” Ellen declared. “Let’s eat.”

…

Later, after the chaos of dinner and presents had subsided, Sam handed Dean an eggnog, and wandered off to look through the first editions of Sandburg’s _Lincoln_ Cas had given him.

Everyone was spread throughout the second floor of the firehouse, and Dean soaked in contentment as he watched them.

Inias had gotten off duty and joined them, still in his Baltimore FD uniform. He and Jo were on the couch, her feet pulled up and tucked under her as she leaned into his side and admired the bracelet Ellen had given her.

Ellen and Benny were cleaning the kitchen, while Andrea helped dry dishes and Charlie put them away. There was a lot of laughing and snapping of towels from that end of the room.

Bobby and Gabe were arguing over the Ravens’ playoff chances. Gabe had a ridiculously large candy cane dangling from his mouth, and Bobby was nursing his own eggnog.

Cas was gathering wrapping paper and boxes, separating the trash from the paper for recycling. He looked up, caught Dean’s eyes, and gave him one of those smiles - the kind of smile that Dean could feel all the way down to the tips of his toes. The kind of smile that made him feel like he didn’t need a coat on a winter day.

_I love him so much. How did I get this lucky?_

His family. The one he built, or the one they built around him.

_I’m the luckiest man on Earth._

He set the eggnog on the coffee table and walked over to the piano, flipping open the lid and dancing his fingers across the keys, picking out notes, playing sounds at random until his fingers found their way and the notes became a melody.

 _“Have yourself a merry little Christmas .Let your heart be light. Next year all our troubles will be out of sight.”_ Dean could feel their eyes on him, but he played on anyway.

 _“Have yourself a merry little Christmas. Make the yuletide gay. Next year all our troubles will be miles away.”_ Ellen moved to stand behind Bobby, resting her hand on his shoulder, and he reached up to put his over hers. Inias pulled Jo closer, and Benny wrapped his arms around Andrea’s and Charlie’s shoulders.

 _“Here we are as in olden days, happy golden days of yore. Faithful friends, who are dear to us, gather near to us once more.”_ Sam sat down at Gabe’s feet, leaning back into him, and Cas came and sat on the piano bench next to Dean.

_"Through the years, we all will be together, if the Fates allow. Hang a shining star upon the highest bough. And have yourself a merry little Christmas - have yourself a merry little Christmas - have yourself a merry little Christmas now.”_

Cas took his hand and squeezed it. “Merry Christmas, Dean,” he whispered, leaning in for a soft kiss.

“Merry Christmas, Cas.”


End file.
